National Public Lands Day & Environmental Education

Tomorrow, September 26, 2009 is 16th Annual celebration of National Public Lands Day. Public lands are all of those lands that belong to the public such as parks, forests, grasslands, scenic by-ways and waterways. These public lands include state parks, nature reserves, national forests and parks and other public monuments. Each of these public lands have 5 things in common
1. They are owned by everyone and no one. Each citizen has a stake in its health but no one person can claim it for his or her own.
2. They are managed by our civil servants, such as local, state or federal employees
3. They are home to many wild creatures including threatened and endangered plant, animal, and bug species.
4. We are all responsible, individually and collectively for taking care of this land and its wildlife by not littering or removing necessary items from it.
5. These are special places that should be around for generations of ALL Americans and visitors to enjoy.

National Public Lands day is celebrated in nearly every community with a large public service event. The event keeps the promise of the Civilian Conservation Corps, the "tree army" that worked from 1933-1942 to preserve and protect America's natural heritage.
This annual event:

Educates Americans about critical environmental and natural resources issues and the need for shared stewardship of these valued, irreplaceable lands;

Builds partnerships between the public sector and the local community based upon mutual interests in the enhancement and restoration of America's public lands;

Improves public lands for outdoor recreation, with volunteers assisting land managers in hands-on work.

This year's theme is Water and Public Lands...and it's not too late to Get Involved. Events are happening this weekend and throughout the autumn months. Visit the link discover what's happening in your town. (And be sure to check out the video featuring Alan Spears of the National Parks Conservation Association who is attending the Breaking Color Barriers in the Great American Outdoors conference in Atlanta, Georgia this week).


Then Sunday evening be sure to tune into PBS' debut of Ken Burns Film The National Parks: America's Best Idea

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Now, it's your turn. Highlight your own Urban Science Adventure while participating in a National Public Lands Day activity. It's a perfect way to earn community service credit, high school and college students who are encouraged to do so or earn badges for scouts. It is also presents an opporuntity earn extra credit for your life science and environmental science classes.

Enter the NPLD Photo and Video Contest 2009 or the Robert Bateman Get to Know Contest. It is a contest to encourage young people, ages 18 and younger to get venture outdoors and get o know their wild neighbors. Sound familiar?

Use these opportunites to win prizes and have your work published - which is a great way to beef up college and scholarship applictions.

Write me and tell me all about your Urban Science Adventures! ©. Share pictures, too.

Additional online sources:
Association of Partners for Public Lands: Engaging the public in caring for our nation's natural and cultural resources

Land Trust Alliance: Together, conserving the places you love